Revealing
by Mrs Moony
Summary: AU: In a universe where Harry Potter never returned to his rightful place in the Wizarding World, and Voldemort is alive again, it is up to five people to find the Boy-Who-Lived. If they don't succeed, all hope of winning the war may be lost...
1. Chapter One: The Order's Task

**Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all related things belong to JK Rowling. I am making no profit off of this (though, nice reviews are a much more enjoyable reward than money, anyway.)**

**Author's Notes: This is an alternative universe story, so it may be slightly confusing at first (I don't know, because I'm the author so I obviously understand the story.) Feel free to review and ask any questions. Oh, and one more thing; just to clear up any confusion, the newspaper article was written in 1989. The actual story is taking place in 1999. Enjoy!**

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**Chapter One**

**The Order's Task**

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**The Daily Prophet**

**August 10th, 1989**

**He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named Back!**

**by Special Correspondent Philip Moore**

After eight years of peaceful times and happiness, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, the Dark wizard whose power endangered many wizards and witches, has returned. Death Eaters, the followers of You-Know-Who, supposedly came back to his service immediately after his resurrection. The Dark Lord and Death Eaters attacked Diagon Alley, invoking fear and shock upon the innocent victims of the attack.

While the Ministry of Magic remains in an uproar over this turn of events, St. Mungo's Hospital is packed with those wizards and witches that managed to survive the dreadful attack. The death toll is estimated to be slightly over three hundred people.

The Wizarding World is filled with confusion over the devastating return of You-Know-Who. On Halloween, 1981, he was thought to have finally left, when he disappeared after a killing curse failed. The curse had been aimed at one-year-old Harry Potter, the son of James and Lily Potter, both of whom were very active in the war. Having survived the curse, many wizards and witches took to calling Potter the "Boy-Who-Lived". In a bizarre twist of events, sources have reported that Potter went missing early last week, though no one is sure, as his previous location remains unknown. For more on that story, turn to page eleven.

Cornelius Fudge, Minister for Magic, appeared at a press conference yesterday afternoon, stating what he intends to do about the situation. "I assure you that we at the Ministry of Magic will do our best to handle the situation." Fudge told reporters." We are dealing with this and for the time being no one is in any immediate danger..."

Hermione sighed and folded the old newspaper, dropping it onto her desk. Lord Voldemort had come back into power ten years ago, even before Hermione had discovered her magical abilities. She had entered the Wizarding World as an enthusiastic, curious, young girl but the war had been going on for a few years up until that point, and she quickly learned that the exciting new experiences came hand-in-hand with the prejudice and evil that haunted this world.

Hermione was now a confident, intelligent young woman, who had only graduated Hogwarts a year ago. She had been Head Girl, and received some of the highest marks of the past century. Her achievement in school had allowed her to become a professor at Hogwarts directly after graduation. Like many other Hogwarts staff, Professor Flitwick, the Charms professor, had been seriously injured in an attack while away from the safety of the school. He was recovering, but wasn't expected to return to his teaching position, so Albus Dumbledore had jumped at the chance to hire the former Head Girl.

As an active member of the Order of the Phoenix, Hermione spent all her spare time working diligently to fight against Voldemort and the Death Eaters. Albus Dumbledore was now enlisting her help for something completely different than anything that other Order members were doing. Hermione had always been exceptionally good at spellwork, even more than she was a Potions and Arithmancy, and Dumbledore had realized this talent. He was putting it to use by having Hermione work on creating a new spell. The Hogwarts Headmaster had worked closely with her, to create a spell to search for a specific witch or wizard. Dumbledore told Hermione that is was vital to find Harry Potter, even after all these years of unsuccessful search attempts. However, these plans had been kept very secret. The Order knew that Hermione was working to develop a spell, but they had no idea what it would do.

Hermione's hard work over the past year had finally paid-off and the spell worked flawlessly. With the proper concentration, and application of magic, they should be able to find Harry Potter. If he was still alive, that is.

Knock, Knock.

Pulled from her thoughts, Hermione walked towards the door, and having expected to be greeted by the face of a fellow professor, she was a bit startled to see the tired face of Ginny Weasley.

"What are you doing here, Ginny? Shouldn't you be saying good-bye to your friends?"

Hermione asked curiously. Ginny was still technically a student, though it was her last day of school. She and Hermione had been good friends at school and had remained that way. However, Ginny wasn't supposed to be able to enter the professors' chambers without one of them giving the password away.

"The train left for platform nine and three-quarters about fifteen minutes ago. Professor McGonagall asked me to tell you that the meeting's about to start." Ginny answered.

The Order was supposed to meet today right after summer holidays began. Hermione had gone over her notes so many times that she was too preoccupied with the spell to notice that the meeting was drawing near. "Right," said Hermione. "Let's get going."

Hermione and Ginny walked the halls of Hogwarts in silence. Hermione was very apprehensive about this meeting. She knew that things were about to change drastically for the Order, since the creation of this spell. She supposed that Ginny was also quite nervous, as she hadn't been in the Order for long and was probably not yet used to the stress that came with being so closely involved in the war. Hermione suspected that she hadn't completely gotten over the attack on the Burrow, the one that the Weasleys had fortunately all gotten out of safe. Ginny's presence at that attack was one of the reasons why Dumbledore had allowed her into the Order before graduating, along with the fact that all her other family members were also in the Order.

"Pepper Imps." Hermione said, when she arrived in front of a familiar stone gargoyle. She had once tried to convince Dumbledore to try a more secure password, but the Headmaster was set on using the names of different sweets.

The gargoyle moved to reveal a stairway leading to the headmaster's office, and Hermione quickly walked upwards.

"Ah, welcome Hermione. Ginny." Dumbledore said calmly, motioning for them to sit down.

Hermione saw Ginny go sit between her mother and her brother, Bill. Hermione, however, went to sit beside one of Ginny's other brothers, Ron.

Ron had been Hermione's best friend when she was at school, and they had remained friends despite the romantic turn in their relationship which took place in their seventh year.

"Hello." Ron smiled, pulling a chair out for her. "Is the spell ready?"

Hermione raised a questioning eyebrow.

"Alright, I suppose that's a stupid question. After all, when have you ever not had something done on time? Well, actually, there was that time in fourth year..."

"That wasn't my fault, Ronald Weasley." Hermione exclaimed.

"I'm sure it wasn't." Ron teased.

"It really wasn't!" Hermione stated, trying to keep a straight face. "Fred and George jinxed my homework so that it would bite me if I started writing!"

"A very likely story." Ron continued, for the sake of bothering Hermione. Then, after a moment he said, "Actually, that doesn't seem too far-fetched compared to other things that they've done..."

Suddenly, Albus Dumbledore stood up, commanding the attention of everyone in the room.

"Hello, everyone." He said calmly. "Now, I understand that many of you have jobs which you must return to quickly, so I hope that this meeting will be brief.

"As you are all aware, Hermione Granger has been working on a spell to greatly assist the Order. What you don't know is what this spell does and how is will be used. The spell which she had created can be used to find any witch or wizard on Earth. I believe it is necessary that we use it to find someone who went missing many years ago. Harry Potter."

Dumbledore didn't quite look as if he had finished his speech, but the brief pause which he took seemed to have been misinterpreted.

To her left, Hermione heard Professor Minerva McGonagall begin to ask Dumbledore a series of questions.

"Harry?" McGonagall said sternly. "Surely, Albus, you don't think there's still a chance that he's ..."

McGonagall's words were drowned out by exclamations from other members.

"Albus, you sure? You know there's no chance of finding the boy after all these years." Said Mad-Eye Moody in his gruff voice.

Remus Lupin, who had been very quiet until this point, finally spoke. "There is always a chance, but even if we find out what happened to him, it's unlikely that he's alive..." He trailed off, with a tone in his voice that Hermione didn't think she had ever heard.

"It is essential that we find Harry and pray that he is still alive." Dumbledore continued, once the outbursts had halted.

He didn't say anymore, but some Order members obviously thought they deserved an explanation for why they needed to find him.

"What d'you mean? said Kingsley Shacklebolt. "Even if Harry Potter is still alive, why is this such a big priority for the order?"

Dumbledore sighed. "That, I am sorry to say, I cannot tell you yet. There are a select few of you that do know, but no one else will for now."

Hermione noticed that both Remus Lupin and Severus Snape nodded knowingly.

"Now," Dumbledore said, "I have another task for some of you. It will be very difficult to find Harry, even if the spell works properly. I will need volunteers to help."

Silence quickly descended upon the room. No one seemed overly anxious to help, especially when they didn't know how finding Harry could possibly be more important than the other things which the order had been working on.

"I'll go." said Remus quietly, his eyes fixed on Dumbledore.

Dumbledore shook his head. "You can't, Remus," he said, "tomorrow is the full moon. It is important that this task be started immediately. I'm sorry."

Remus simply nodded.

"I should go." Hermione stated. "It is my spell, after all."

"I agree." said Dumbledore. "It is a complex spell, and you can probably perform it the best."

"Then, I'm going." said Ron almost immediately.

"Me, too." Ginny added.

Hermione smiled gratefully at her friends.

"Very well," said Dumbledore. "Anyone else? I'm sure that Hermione, Ginny and Ron wouldn't mind any extra help."

Luna Lovegood, who was sitting on the other side of the office spoke up, "I think I'll go. Harry is alive, after all, _they_ just want you to think he isn't."

Who _they_ were, nobody bothered to ask.

Hermione looked around the office, hoping for more volunteers. McGonagall looked as if she desperately wanted to help, but thought there was little chance that Harry was alive. Others in the room were also looking apprehensive. Nymphadora Tonks, Mundungus Fletcher, Emmeline Vance...

"I'll 'elp find 'Arry." Rubeus Hagrid said.

"Hagrid," Dumbledore replied slowly, "you know you can't. You would need to be able to use magic."

This statement caused Hagrid to dawn a look of disappointment, but he accepted the Headmaster's opinion without question.

"I - I could help..." said Neville Longbottom timidly.

Everyone seemed to be shocked at this statement. Neville had never been exceptionally brave but he was often very helpful. However, he had gotten a little bit more courageous since being accepted into the Order.

Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling behind his half moon glasses. "Thank you, Neville." He replied. "Well, it seems that we have enough volunteers. I suggest that the five of you leave tonight. You may all go."

Everyone filed out of the office quietly, but as soon as they were out, people shared their thoughts on this task. Hermione could hear bits and pieces of various conversations.

"- completely mad -"

"I don't know about that, maybe -"

"- always a chance -"

Ron grabbed Hermione's hand and pulled her from the busy crowd.

"What d'you think about this?" He asked.

"I suppose there's a chance of finding Harry Potter. It's unlikely, but still possible."

Hermione sighed. Even after having known for months about Dumbledore wanting to find Harry, she still didn't know if it was likely.

Ron nodded his head. "Bit cynical, aren't they?" He said, gesturing towards the chattering crowd.

"Not necessarily. They probably shouldn't be getting their hopes up, anyway." Hermione stated.

"Come on, let's get ready." said Ginny, who had just showed-up at Ron's side with Neville and Luna. "We've got a lot of work in front of us."

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The Hogwarts gates opened and Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Neville and Luna headed outwards, wands tight in their hands, as they left the Apparation-proof zone. 

They were probably still safe, as Voldemort had not yet dared to attack so close to Hogwarts, probably due to fear of Dumbledore.

"Ready?" Ginny asked. "We'll Apparate on three. One ... two-"

"Wait!" Neville said urgently. "What's the address again?"

"Number four, Privet Drive," supplied Hermione.

"All right. Now, one ... two ... three!" Ginny shouted.

Suddenly, Hermione saw a row of small orderly houses materialize before her eyes. The street had a look about it that suggested they'd be extremely unwelcome should they try to befriend any of the residents.

"Uh-" said Ron curiously. "Where did that light go?"

"Ron, what on Earth are you talking about?" Hermione asked before she noticed that a streetlamp had gone out.

"I've got a put-outer," said Ginny, removing the light from another streetlamp.

"Dumbledore gave it to me before we left."

"Oh," said Ron. "Anyway, Hermione, are you ready to do the spell?"

"Yes." Hermione replied, her voice shaking slightly. It seemed that nerves had finally caught up with her. She knew that it was vital to perform the spell properly, even if she still didn't know why Harry Potter had to be found.

Hermione raised her wand slightly, and pointed it directly at number four. She would need to cast the spell on Harry's last known residence. The spell would be able to detect if anyone magical had lived there, and for a brief moment, they should be able to get a glimpse of where that person was now. If he was alive.

Putting aside her doubts, Hermione cleared her throat and said clearly, "Exquiro Magicus!"

A jet of neon blue light hit the house, and seemed to spread around the whole area. Hermione silently prayed that the bright light wouldn't wake the sleeping Muggles.

Slowly the light around them faded, until they were left with what looked almost like a Muggle movie screen (though, Hermione, being the only Muggle-born present, was sure that she was the only one who thought of it this way.)

A picture flashed before their eyes. It was blurred around the edges, but Hermione could make-out a boy, standing behind the counter in a bar, surrounded by people. He couldn't be much older than her. The boy's bright green eyes were hidden behind round glasses. His hair stuck-up in the back, and in the front it was covering a thin scar, shaped exactly like a lightening bolt. Behind him were tables, crowded with adults who were laughing and talking, and a window with a sign hanging in it; _Ye Olde Pub_.

Hermione heard Ginny gasp beside her.

"That's Harry Potter..." Ginny whispered. "He's really alive."

As Hermione was about to reply, the picture faded, and the five of them were once again left engulfed in the darkness.

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Questions? Comments? Please Review!


	2. Chapter Two: Making Progress

**Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all related things belong to JK Rowling. I am making no profit off of this (though, nice reviews are a much more enjoyable reward than money, anyway.)**

**Author's Notes: Thank you _very_ much to everyone who reviewed the first chapter: SiriusBabe3033, TheAlphieParadox, LynnJ, oasis, TwilightSorceress, NightSpear and MeoI'm glad you all enjoyed it! It means a lot to me, especially considering that this is the first fic I've done that isn't a one-shot. To answer your questions: TwilightSorceress, yes Ron and Hermione are together in this story; oasis, I can't really give away too much, but I'm glad that you picked-up on the fact that Sirius' life may be very different because it'll be important later on.**

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**Chapter Two**

**Making Progress**

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Muggle transportation, in Ron's opinion, was terrible. He was cramped into the back of a small four-door green car, sitting between Neville and Luna, while Hermione and Ginny sat in the front. Neville was looking very tired, and Luna was gazing dreamily out the window.

"Tell me again, why are we using a car?" Ron leaned forward to ask Ginny.

"Because there's nothing else we can use." She replied. "We can't Apparate if we don't know _exactly_ where we're going, and the Muggles'll surely see us if we fly in on broomsticks. Pity we can't use the Floo Network."

Ron sighed. As the war had gotten worse, and the damage in Voldemort's attacks had increased, the Floo Network had been disabled. Too many Death Eaters were popping-up unexpectedly in the fireplaces of innocent people.

"Okay, but can't we use a portkey?" Ron replied irritably. He wasn't in the best mood, especially considering that they had been driving for hours.

"All right, Ron, why don't you go and try to create a portkey when we don't even know where we're going." Ginny replied coolly. "After all, _you_ must be capable of such complex magic, right? We all know how great you are at Charms."

It looked like he wasn't the only one who was grumpy. Ginny, in a good mood, would probably be the last person to be so negative.

Hermione said, "Would you two stop arguing? Ron, stop complaining, and Ginny, stop implying that Ron is bad at Magic."

"Just pointing out his obvious flaws. Ginny said, yawning and leaning her head back, as if she were about to fall asleep.

"Yes, well don't." Ron snapped.

The car fell silent, as Ron flipped through some Muggle newspapers. He was still trying to figure out what a "computer" was, and why there were all these ads to get one.

The five of them had been traveling for almost a week, all over Ireland, looking for the Boy-Who-Lived. The image of Harry Potter, which they had seen in Surrey, seemed to point to him being in some pub in Ireland.

Neville had vaguely recognized the scene outside the window, and had promptly told Hermione that he had seen it when he went with his grandmother to Ireland, many years back. Unfortunately, Neville was not known for his great memory, and he couldn't place which of the towns it had been in, as he had visited quite a few. They already checked two, and were now driving through Dublin.

"Can we _please_ take a break?" Ginny asked Hermione, breaking the uneasy silence and finally voicing the question that Ron was dying to ask.

"Ginny, I know we're all tired, but-" Hermione began.

"I agree with Ginny." Neville said. "Can't we just stop and take a break?"

"We're not going to get any work done if we're all exhausted and under-fed." Ron told Hermione, knowing that it would be one of the rare times he'd win an argument with her.

"All right, all right." Hermione finally gave in.

The car pulled to a stop, outside a small restaurant. "We'll have a bit of lunch here, and then get back to work, okay?" Hermione said.

Ron nodded, and slid out of the car, right after Luna.

The restaurant was very tiny, but well-kept. A waiter showed them to a table, and told them he'd be back to take their orders.

Ron glanced around the table, and saw that Ginny still looked quite grumpy. Hermione seemed to have noticed this, too, because she began asking her a series of questions.

"Are you all right, Ginny? You don't look too good. Is something wrong? Perhaps you're coming down with a cold-"

Ginny shook her head. "It's nothing." She said, unconvincingly. "I'm just still a little shocked that Harry Potter's alive."

The look on Hermione's face told Ron that he wasn't the only one who wasn't convinced of Ginny's claims, but neither pushed the matter.

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The rest of their lunch passed uneventfully (with the exception of the waiter's odd expression when Luna asked for an onion in her cocktail drink), and the group made their way back to the car, hoping they would find Harry soon so they could return home. 

Ron was about to follow Neville into the back of the car when he noticed that Hermione had stopped moving. Ginny was looking very apprehensive, too, and he saw her exchange a worried glance with Hermione and swear under her breath.

"What's wrong?" Ron said quietly.

Hermione looked quite worried. "I think we're being followed."

"What?" Ron whispered. _Oh no, not now. Just when we're making progress ..._

"Back there, by that alleyway. Don't those people look suspicious." Hermione replied.

Ron glanced behind him, but his timing wasn't very good, because at just that moment, one of four cloaked figures standing near the alleyway looked directly at him.

Before Ron knew what was happening, curses and hexes were being thrown in every direction. The four figures had moved closer, and Neville had already gotten out of the car.

Ron had his wand gripped tightly in his hand and pointed it directly at the tallest of the figures. "_EXPELLIARMUS_!"

The figure ducked the spell, his hood falling down to reveal the face of Rabastan Lestrange.

This is just bloody great, isn't it? Ron thought sarcastically, as he threw another hex towards Lestrange, who was very well known among the Order members. He had been one of the first ones that Voldemort had helped escape from Azkaban.

Casting a shield charm to block a curse that was coming from another Death Eater, he looked to the side to see that Lestrange was now duelling fiercely with Hermione, while Ginny, Neville and Luna concentrated their efforts on the others.

Ron deflected a few more curses, and vaguely noticed that he and the unknown Death Eater were moving further and further from the rest of the group. Hermione was still fighting Lestrange. Ron saw that the other two Death Eaters' faces were now visible and recognized them as Avery and Dolohiv.

Who am I fighting, anyway? Ron thought, before shouting out a spell.

"_IMPEDIMENTA!_"

The Death Eater easily deflected the curse, and cast a new one in return.

Before he could do anything, Ron felt ropes coil around him, from his neck to his ankles. The rope was quickly tightening around his neck, and he was finding it hard to breathe. "_DIFFINDO!_" Ron gasped, pointing his wand at the ropes and cutting them.

He ignored the light-headed feeling that came with being temporarily deprived of oxygen, and was about to raise his wand when he saw that the opposing Death Eater already had his pointed at Ron and had started to cast a spell.

"_EXPELLIARMUS!_" Ron heard Ginny shout from across the parking lot, and the Death Eater he was duelling with was caught off-guard as his wand was ripped from his hands and the force of the spell even knocked away the hood of his cloak.

"_STUPE_-" Ron began shouting a spell, and then realised it was too late.

The Death Eater quickly Apparated away, but not before Ron had time to see cold grey eyes, blond hair and a pale complexion.

Running towards the rest of the group, he saw the other three Death Eaters also Apparate away.

"Thanks." Ron said to Ginny, still slightly breathless.

"No ... problem ..." She replied, though she was visibly shaken.

"I wonder how they found us... At least they're gone." He said.

Hermione shook her head. "That's not a good thing."

"Why not?" Neville asked.

"Because they know where we are. They'll come back..." Hermione answered.

Ron was beginning to get worried. "You don't think they've gone to get Voldemort, do you?" He had just recently begun using the name, rather than saying _You-Know-Who_.

Neville gasped beside him, though Ron wasn't sure whether it was from the use of Voldemort's name, or from the idea that the Death Eaters mind return with him.

"Let's just get to Harry as quickly as possible." Luna said calmly.

They all nodded, knowing that their task had just become a hundred times riskier than it was before.

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The sun was beginning to set, and they were still looking around the town, though they were now on their feet rather than in the car. This time, however, no one dared to suggest that they take a break, as they realised that the sooner they find Harry, the better. 

Ginny's mood, it seemed, had not improved since earlier in the day. She still looked very exhausted and irritable. Under ordinary circumstances, his sister's health would have been a huge priority for Ron, but he knew now that it was better that Ginny was tired, than that they stop to rest and find themselves under attack by more Death Eaters.

"Can't we just say _Accio, Harry_?" Ginny asked.

Ron smiled, not knowing whether she was being grumpy, like she had this morning, or whether she was trying to make light of a bad situation.

"I'd think it'd just scare him if he suddenly found himself being dragged across town into the hands of strangers, by a mysterious force." Ron replied, knowing perfectly well that it was impossible to use the Summoning Charm on a person.

Ginny smiled, and it was one of the first genuine ones he had seen in a while.

"Oh my god." Hermione said, stopping dead in her tracks.

"Wha-" Ron began, but then he saw was she was looking at.

Across the street from them was a line of tiny buildings. The sign hanging in the window of one of them read _Ye Olde Pub_.

Ron exchanged nervous glances with Neville and Ginny before following Hermione across the street. Luna was the only one who didn't seem the least bit apprehensive.

Hermione took a deep breath, opened the door to the pub and stepped in.

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**Author's Notes:** **Re-reading this I noticed that some of the characters may _seem_ a little out-of-character (Ginny and possibly Ron.) However, if you think about it, a lot has been different for them, and while they'll still be basically like the book characters, there'll also be differences. Ron has grown-up with Hermione as his best friend, not Harry, and Ginny's life is much different, especially considering that a _certain_ incident in her first year never occurred. Then again, perhaps, as the author I might be the only one who noticed the subtle changes (or I might just be paranoid…)**

**Please review! Praise and constructive criticism are appreciated. I'd especially like to know what you thought of Ron's point-of-view.**


	3. Chapter Three: The Boy Who Lived

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all related things are property of JK Rowling. I claim no ownership, and am making no profit.

Author's Notes: Again, thank you to every one who reviewed. It is greatly appreciated. This chapter is in Ginny's point-of-view, and I'm very curious to know what all of you think.

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Chapter Three

The Boy-Who-Lived

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Ignoring the nervous feeling she had, Ginny followed Ron through the door into _Ye Olde Pub_.

The pub was small, though it was crowded with people, all of whom were laughing and smiling happily. Ginny began to slowly relax, as the friendly atmosphere started reminding her of life at the Burrow.

Hermione had taken a seat at one of the few empty tables, and motioned for everyone else to join her.

Ginny glanced around, trying to look for anyone that resembled the image they had seen nearly a week ago. No one seemed to have that same untidy dark hair, or the brilliant green eyes.

Taking a seat next to Ron, she continued looking around the pub anxiously.

"Do you see him?" Ron asked quietly, clearly trying to not draw attention to the table.

"Not yet." Hermione replied calmly. "Just wait and see for a while. The image we saw of him showed him behind the bar. So he's got to work here. He's bound to show up eventually."

"Even if he doesn't, someone in here should know him. We'll have to ask them where he lives." Ron said.

Ginny didn't understand how they could be so calm about everything. For the first time in her life, she was feeling very negative. What were the odds that they'd find Harry, anyway, even if they did know what he looked like?

She shook her head, and tried to concentrate on more positive thoughts. After all, it was natural to be a little nervous. It was her first official mission for the Order. Even though she had been a member for a while already, she hadn't been able to help very much because of her school work.

"Er- you don't suppose that the Death Eaters'll find us here, do you?" Neville asked Hermione.

Hermione replied, "I don't think so. I suppose that they could, but probably not. All they know right now is that five members of the Order are in Ireland. They don't know why, and that's what's important."

Still, Ginny couldn't shake the feeling that Neville's fears could come true. Even if the Death Eaters didn't strike yet, they would eventually.

A few more minutes passed before Ron abruptly got up from the table.

"I'm going to go ask the bartender if he's seen Harry." Ron informed Hermione.

Ginny saw him walk over to the bar, and begin asking questions. He held his hand in mid-air, and Ginny supposed he was probably describing Harry's height (which was relatively small next to Ron's tall stature.)

Trying to start-up a conversation, Ginny voiced a question that had been bothering her for a while. "I still don't understand why no one could ever find Harry. He's alive, so why didn't anyone ever recognize him?"

Hermione considered this for a moment. "Well, first of all this town has few wizards or witches, if any. You know that we tend to live slightly outside the cities and town. Besides, even if one wizard or witch did stumble into here, which it _highly_ unlikely, they might have not paid enough attention to notice Harry's scar."

Ginny was about to respond when Ron returned to the table.

"The bartender said that Harry'll be working here tonight. We'll just have to wait a little while." Ron told everyone.

Hermione nodded. "Well, that's good news. It'll only be a few more hours and we'll be able to get Harry and go back to Hogwarts."

Ginny seemed to be the only one who saw a problem with this plan. "Don't you think that's going to be a little difficult? Getting Harry back to Hogwarts?"

"Why should it be?" Ron shook his head. "Other than the fact that we'll have to drive for another week, and now we'll have to fit six people into that tiny car."

"Oh, don't worry. I'm sure that everyone will fit just fine." Hermione assured him.

"That's easy for you to say." Ron snapped. "You get to sit in the front seat. I just wish one of us knew a charm to enlarge the inside of the car-"

Ginny interrupted, hoping to stop the argument and tell everyone what the real problem with the plan was. "No, no, that's not it. Doesn't anyone realize that Harry might not _want_ to come with us?"

Ron and Neville both exchanged a confused look, but Hermione seemed to finally understand.

"Of course!" She said. "Why didn't I think of that? Harry was only nine-years-old when he disappeared, he's not even going to know about the Wizarding World."

Ron replied. "How are we supposed to convince him? Use magic? Even if we do, why should he believe that we're telling him the truth. He's going to think we're crazy if we tell him that he's a wizard!"

"Ron, keep your voice down." Hermione warned. "We don't want to attract attention. Anyway, the point is that we'll just have to tell him the truth about everything. We know far too much about his past for him to not believe us."

"I'm sure we'll be able to convince him. It's not like we're telling him anything unbelievable." Luna added.

Ginny truly didn't know if Luna ever considered _anything_ to be unbelievable. She'd probably believe it if the Quibbler ran an article about how there was a colony of Crumple-Horned Snorkacks living on Mars.

* * *

For almost another hour, the group remained silent, having their drinks and the occasional snack, before Neville pointed towards the doorway. 

Ginny turned around to see a boy, slightly older than her, entering the pub, and making his way for the bartender. He had the same lightening-bolt scar that Ginny had seen on Privet Drive.

Harry was now pouring drinks for people sitting at the bar, while the other bartender waved good-bye and left the pub.

Hermione looked around the table. "This is it." She said. "Should we all go, or should one of us go talk to him first?"

"I'll go." Ginny volunteered. She didn't know why, but she really wanted to find out what Harry Potter was like.

She had heard of him as a child, and had desperately wanted to meet him. It wasn't that he was some great, brave hero or anything. He had only been a year old during the attack on Godric's Hollow, and no baby could possibly act like a hero. Still, his story had always fascinated her, and she wondered what had happened to him. Harry Potter's whereabouts as a child were always unknown. It seemed that only Dumbledore himself, and possibly some of the other professors knew where the famous boy was living.

Now that she had the chance to meet him, she didn't want to pass it up.

Ginny walked slowly towards the bar, and sat down on one of the stools. She waited for a moment before Harry finally came-up to her.

"Hello." He smiled. "Can I get you anything to drink?"

Ginny concealed her smile. She was finally meeting Harry Potter. "Um," She replied nervously, "I'll just have a glass of water."

He went to get her drink, and she took a deep breath. How was she supposed to tell him the truth about everything? _Hello, my name is Ginny Weasley. I'm a witch, and you should know that you're famous in the Wizarding World. You're Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, the hero to thousands. Of course, you wouldn't know any of this, you don't even know you're a wizard. _Ginny thought to herself, _Oh yes, that'll sound wonderful. He'll probably have me carried off by men in white coats._

He returned with her water in a moment, and she thanked him.

"Wait." Ginny said timidly when he was about to leave to serve someone else.

He turned around, a curious look written on his face. "What is it?" He asked.

He probably thought that she just wanted to ask for another drink, or some snack. _How wrong he is,_ she thought.

"I... I have something to tell you." Ginny replied, before realizing how stupid she must have sounded.

"Really?" He said, smiling. "What is it?"

Alright, now just tell him about how he's one of the most famous people on Earth, Ginny thought sarcastically.

"I'm... you're..." Ginny pausing, trying to take deep breathes. "I know who you are."

"I'm the bartender." He replied, amused. "That's what they typically call the people who serve customers at bars.

At least he's got a sense of humour, Ginny thought.

"No, I mean... I know things about you... About you're past..." She said, not loosing eye contact with him. "Not everything about you, but I know who you are. And, I know that you once lived with you're relatives, the Dursleys."

The smile immediately left Harry's face. "How d'you know that? Who are you...?"

Ginny shook her head. "I can't explain right now. But I know things that you deserve to know."

Harry looked around. "Listen, I can't keep talking now. I have more customers to serve. I'll have time for a break in a little over an hour when people starting clearing out. Okay?"

Ginny nodded, and made her way back to the table, looking back at Harry once. He looked very concerned all of a sudden, not anything like the happy person who had entered the pub earlier.

"What did he say?" Ron asked when she returned.

Ginny explained, "He's busy right now, but he's willing to listen a little later, when the pub is less crowded. So, we'll just sit here for a little while."

"Alright, but what did you say to him, anyway?" Hermione questioned.

"I didn't tell him much. Nothing about the Wizarding World, or You-Know-Who." She replied. "I just told him that there were things I needed to tell him, and that I knew about his past with the Dursleys. I guess he assumed that I must know something important if I knew about his childhood."

Hermione nodded.

* * *

An hour later, people slowly began filing out of the pub, as the sky darkened. 

From her table, Ginny saw Harry motion for her to come back to the bar.

She went back and sat down on the same stool, about to say something, but she was interrupted.

"Listen, first I want to know how why you know things about me?" He said clearly, "I mean, I just met you, and you already know my entire history."

"Well, I actually, I don't know you're _entire_ history, no one does, not even you." Ginny explained, but then realized that he had no clue what she meant by that. "But that's irrelevant. First, I need to know something. What happened? How did you end-up here, in Ireland?"

Harry seemed to be considering whether or not he should tell her. Apparently, he finally decided that it would be best to tell. "I don't know exactly. When I was nine, I was sitting at home one day, in the cupboard-"

Ginny was caught between feelings of surprise and amusement. "Um, why exactly were you sitting in the cupboard?"

"That's where I lived. The Dursleys couldn't bother to give me a proper bedroom, so they said that's where I'll live."

So, not only had Harry grown-up without parents, but he had grown-up with people who treated him like dirt. Ginny didn't know how to respond to that.

Fortunately, though, she didn't have to. "Anyways, I remember Uncle Vernon getting a call from the police, telling him that Aunt Petunia and Dudley had been found dead. Uncle Vernon was too shocked to do anything, and he didn't even blame me, which is odd because I got blamed for everything from starving people in Third World countries to the bad weather outside." Harry paused for a moment, and Ginny noticed that he had a troubled look as he spoke of his relatives. He looked as though he'd rather not talk about them, but seemed to decide that he'd have to. "Anyway, no one even knew how they died. They were found with their eyes wide open, lying on the ground."

The Killing Curse, Ginny thought, recalling her Defense Against The Darks Arts lessons at Hogwarts.

"Uncle Vernon and I were about to leave the house to go to the police station." He continued. "I was probably only coming because he didn't trust me alone in the house. But, we never got there. The door to the house opened, and a few people walked in. I don't know how they got in, but next thing that I knew they were taking something out of their pockets, and muttering some nonsense words. I saw Uncle Vernon scream and drop to the floor, and then I fell, too. I don't know what happened, maybe I just fainted from the shock, or something."

"They stunned you." Ginny answered, but then realized that she had probably stunned him by saying that. "Er... I mean, they... never mind. What happened after that?"

Harry looked curiously at her, then continued. "I don't know. I woke-up, and I was in a hospital here in Dublin. The doctors told me that I was found at night time, lying on the grass, by a few children. My arm had been cut badly. They said that if I had been found any later, there was a good chance I would have bled to death."

Some Death Eaters must have taken him. They're getting clumsy, though. Probably thought that he'd just bleed to death, and they didn't bother killing him properly. Ginny though grimly.

"They asked me what had happened to me. I told them the truth; that I didn't know."

Harry paused, looking very tired. Ginny thought he looked more troubled than sad. He clearly didn't have a good relationship with his uncle, but she couldn't imagine what it would be like to watch a relative die.

"They asked me where my parents were, and I told them that they were dead, and so were all the other relatives that I knew of. When they asked my name, I lied." Harry confessed.

"Why?" Ginny asked, concerned.

Harry shrugged. "Because I didn't know whether or not I should tell them. And because I didn't know what the point was. I had no family left anyway, so what did it matter? I told them I was Harry Smith. I guess they looked for records of a Harry Smith and never found him. The next thing I knew, I was being placed in an orphanage."

Ginny nodded, silently wondering how she would fair if she went through all of that.

"Now," Harry continued. "You have to tell me what you know."

Ginny gulped, and decided that it was finally time. "Harry, um, have you ever done anything unexplainable?"

His eyes narrowed. "What d'you mean?"

"Things that made no sense. Blown things-up when you're angry, etc. Done things when you're feeling especially emotional." Ginny answered.

Harry considered this for a moment, and replied. "Yes... I have. When, I was younger, at the Dursleys' house, when I'd get really angry or scared. I even ended-up on the roof of the school once when Dudley's gang was chasing me. It was almost like magic."

"It _was _magic." Ginny replied slowly.

Harry didn't understand. "Huh? How could it be..."

"Magic exists, Harry." She answered. "I swear, it does."

"That's silly..." Harry said. "There's no such thing... I mean... there can't be... right?"

Ginny said, "Yes, there can be. Magic exists Harry. There are plenty of magical people. You're one of them."

"That's not possible." Harry replied stubbornly.

"Of course it is."

"Then..." Harry looked very confused. "I'm magical?"

"Yes." Ginny replied, hoping that he'd believe her. "You're a wizard."

"I don't understand. I..." He trailed off.

"I'll explain everything, all right? But, first, I need to know when we can leave here." Ginny replied.

"In a few minutes. The pub'll close soon, and William - that's the owner - will lock-up."

Ginny nodded. "Okay. I'll be waiting there, with my friends..."

"Um," Harry replied, "I don't think I ever got you're name."

"Ginny." She smiled, "Ginny Weasley."

"So... are you a... witch?" He asked.

"Yes." Ginny replied. "And, so are my friends. Well, not all of them, obviously, two of them are wizards, but you know what I mean..."

Harry tried to smile, but Ginny sensed that he was probably too overwhelmed to really smile.

Ginny went back to the table. She was immediately greeted with questions of what happened, and whether or not Harry believed her.

"He believes me, I think." Ginny sighed. "We're going to talk more after. The pub's going to close in a few minutes."

They all nodded, but didn't say anything else.

A few minutes later, Harry motioned for them to leave the pub, and they did, with him following them.

"Is there somewhere we can go?" Ginny asked Harry. "It might not be safe out in public." She knew that the Death Eaters could come at any moment.

"Why wouldn't it be safe...?" He asked slowly. "I mean, I know it's night, but still..."

"It's just a better idea if we're in a more private place." Hermione said hurriedly

Harry turned to look at her. "And you are...?"

"Hermione Granger." She supplied. "And, that's Ron Weasley, Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood."

Harry nodded his head, looking a bit overwhelmed. "I suppose we could go to my flat. If it's that important."

"You're a wizard, Harry." Ginny said. "Isn't that important enough?"

"I just ... don't understand everything yet." Harry said.

"Come on, we've got a car, we'll drive to your place." Hermione replied.

Harry looked curious at this. "You've got a car? Shouldn't you have broomsticks or a magic carpet?"

Ginny suppressed a giggle at Harry's curiosity.

Ron groaned, "I wish we had broomsticks. They're much more comfortable. How are we supposed to fit six people in the car?"

"Harry can right up front, and the four of you can sit in the back." Hermione answered calmly, as they walked towards the car.

"Great. That'll be really comfortable." Ron replied.

Oh boy, Ginny thought. _Now they'll be bickering about the car for days, and it'll be sickening for everyone except them, because they like being argumentative, and then they'll make-up and be sickeningly sweet for a few days. _Not that she didn't want them happy, but she'd much rather not have to think about her brother in a romantic relationship with anyone.

Ginny thought. Not that she didn't want them happy, but she'd much rather not have to think about her brother in a romantic relationship with anyone. 

Ginny squeezed into the back of the small car, in between Ron and Luna. Ron was still muttering about Muggle transportation, and how much better it would be if they could just have Apparated here. Luna, on the other hand, was continuing to gaze absentmindedly out the window, as she had done in the morning.

In about ten minutes, Harry pointed out a small apartment building to Hermione and she parked in front of it. The six of them got out of the car and headed for the door to the building.

Once they were upstairs, Harry pulled the key out of his pocket and lead them into his apartment.

The apartment was small, but had a very cozy atmosphere about it. It was clear that Harry probably enjoyed living in the apartment, much more than he had in the Dursleys' house.

Still, it wasn't the most clean place on Earth. It wasn't particularly dirty, either, but Ginny was strongly reminded of Ron's room when their mother hadn't ordered him to tidy-up for a few days.

There was a sofa, and a coffee table sitting in front of a large box. Ginny thought she remembered Hermione telling her something about that being a television, but she wasn't sure.

Sitting down on the sofa, she waited for everyone else to settle down. Harry brought in a few chairs from the kitchen table, and began to speak once everyone was seated.

"Okay, now _please_ explain everything to me." He pleaded.

Ginny took a deep breath and then began. "All right, you already know that you, Ron and Neville are wizards. And that Hermione, Luna and I are witches.

"Years and years ago," Ginny continued, "there was a very Dark wizard, who was trying to take over the entire Wizarding community."

"There's a Wizarding community?" Harry questioned.

Hermione answered this before Ginny had a chance. "Yes," she said, "there is. There are schools, and government."

Harry nodded, taking in all the information.

"Right." Ginny said. "Now, some people obviously agreed with the Dark Wizard-"

"What's his name?" Harry interrupted.

"Voldemort." Ron answered.

Ginny flinched at the sound of the name, and saw Neville do the same. Ron had just recently begun using the name, and Hermione and Luna both thought it was pointless to not say it.

"Yes ... him." Ginny replied nervously. "Like I said, some people agreed with him, but there were many who didn't. In 1970, he began to gain power. The war went on for eleven years, until 1981. In those eleven years, many people fought against him. Most just tried to remain well-hidden, and hoped that he would ignore them. However, there were some that fought. Including your parents."

Harry's eyes widened. "My parents... they were a wizard and a witch...?"

Ginny nodded.

"Oh." Harry said, comprehension dawning on him. "That's why the Dursleys hated them so much, isn't it? Aunt Petunia always said my Mum was a freak, but she never said why she felt that way."

"Some Muggles feel that way about wizards and witches. And many wizards and witches feel that way about Muggles. That's why the war started in the first place." Ron replied.

"Muggles?" Harry inquired.

"That's what we call none magical people, like the Dursleys." Ginny answered. "Anyway, Ron's right, that's why the war started in the first place. You-Know-Who thought Muggles and Muggle-borns - magical children with Muggle parents - were filth."

Harry nodded. "So he wanted a world that only had...?"

"Purebloods." Ginny finished. "Now, like I said, your parents fought against him. But he was very powerful, and it was only a matter of time before he got them." Ginny gulped, not wanting to continue.

Hermione picked-up where she left off. "On Hallowe'en, 1981, he went to your parents home, and killed them. Then he tried to kill you. Except that it didn't work. Somehow the spell rebounded, and Voldemort was gone."

Harry blinked. He didn't say anything for a moment and Ginny was sure that he had finally gotten too much information and would soon tell them that they were all crazy.

"Why?" Harry asked eventually. "If he could kill that many people, he shouldn't have any problem killing a little baby..."

"Yes, he should have been able to kill you." Ginny agreed. "But for some reason, he couldn't. I don't know why. Nobody does. Well, Dumbledore might..."

"Who's Dumbledore?"

"He's the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." Ron answered. "They say he's the only one that Voldemort ever feared."

The sound of the name once again brought an unpleasant feeling to Ginny's stomach.

"I... I still don't understand." Harry replied.

Ginny looked at him curiously, wanting to help. "What don't you understand?"

"Why did you come and get me? I don't understand why it's so important to find me, and why no one did before." He answered.

Hermione sighed. "Well, no one _could_ find you before. We had no idea what had happened to you. And, there were other things that the Wizarding World had to deal with then."

"What?" Harry asked.

"He came back." Ginny replied. "You-Know-Who came back, only days after you went missing."

"Did the war start again?" Harry asked, and Ginny was sure that he was genuinely concerned.

She nodded. "Yes. In fact, it's ... it's still going on."

"Oh." Harry said quietly. "Still, you haven't told me why you wanted to find me."

"To be honest, we're not exactly sure." Hermione replied. "Professor Dumbledore told us that it was vital that we try and find you."

"But that's all he told us." Ron interrupted.

"Exactly." Hermione agreed. "Whatever the reason, we all trust Professor Dumbledore's judgement. It must be important, especially since he said that it had to do with the war."

"Okay." Harry replied.

"But it's not just to do with the war." Ginny said smiling. "You deserve the chance to be where you belong. In the Wizarding World. You should have never missed your opportunity to go to Hogwarts, and grow-up like a normal wizard."

Harry eyed her carefully for a minute. "So... I'm supposed to come to the Wizarding World now?"

Ginny nodded. "That's what Dumbledore told us. I know you'll have to adjust, but-"

"No," Harry interrupted, "it's all right. I didn't like living with the Dursleys, and I don't like living here. But up until now, I've had no choice."

"Good." Ginny smiled.

"I'll... I'm going to call William - the owner of the pub - to tell him that I'm quitting."

"You don't mind leaving your job...?" Hermione asked timidly.

"Not one bit."

"Well, that's good news." Ron smiled. "Anyways, we should probably get going. Hermione, Ginny, Neville, Luna and I will stay at a hotel. We'll come back in the morning to pick you up. All right?"

"All right." Harry agreed, getting-up and walking across the apartment.

Harry held the door while everyone left, saying good-bye.

"Good night, Harry." Ginny said.

"G'night." He said, still looking as though he were in a small state of shock.

Ginny smiled at him, before the apartment door shut, and she followed Hermione, Ron, Neville and Luna outside.

* * *

Author's Notes: Thanks for reading, everyone! Please review! Comments and constructive criticism welcome.


	4. Chapter Four: Back Home

**Disclaimer: JK Rowling, not me, owns Harry Potter, and she is the one who makes profit off the characters. The characters are not mine, and I'm fine with that (even if I do wish that I owned Remus and Sirius ;-)**

**Author's Notes: Thank you to everyone who reviewed! Your comments are very much appreciated, especially considering that this is the first multi-chapter story I've written. _Molly Morrison_, you mentioned that you were a bit surprised with Harry's behaviour. I plan to address this later on, hopefully in Chapter Five, which should be from his point of view, but I'm very happy that you mentioned it anyway. It's great that someone is showing interest.**

**Also, I'm sorry about the delay in updating. I've been quite busy with school work.**

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* * *

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Chapter Four**

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Back Home

The sun was just visible over the horizon, but Hermione was already awake and fully dressed. The previous day had been one of the most eventful in her entire life.

Trying to explain everything to Harry Potter had not been an easy task, but she, Ron, Ginny, Neville and Luna had managed to convince him of the existence of the Wizarding World. They didn't even have to resort to using magic to do so.

Hermione truly hoped that now that they had accomplished their task, their lives could get back to normal. As normal as any member of the Order's life was, anyway. The past week had been exhausting, both mentally and physically. The entire group was on edge, and very moody. She hoped that once they were back home, and well-rested, things would be fine again.

The group had spent the night in a tiny hotel. Hermione shared a room with Ginny and Luna, while Ron and Neville slept in the next room.

Hermione went over to Ginny's bed and shook her lightly.

"Just a minute, mum..." Ginny mumbled, eyes still closed. "We'll still have time to catch the Hogwarts Express..."

Hermione rolled her eyes, and continued to nudge Ginny. Hermione had learned long ago that very few of the Weasleys were morning people. "Come on, we've got to get up. It's important."

Finally opening her eyes, Ginny got out of bed, and yawned.

Luna, it seemed, had heard Hermione and was also getting out of bed, though she was far more awake than Ginny. "Lovely day, isn't it?" She said happily.

"Yes." Hermione agreed. "Anyway, I'd better go make sure Ron and Neville are awake."

She strode across the room, and opened the door into the hallway. Hermione knocked lightly on Ron and Neville's door. No answer. She tapped a little harder, and Neville finally came to the door, dressed, but looking thoroughly exhausted.

"Isn't Ron awake yet?" She asked him.

When Neville shook his head, Hermione just sighed, and entered the room.

"Ron wake-up. Ron..." Hermione said, ignoring the blush she felt creeping up her cheeks when she noticed Ron was only in his pyjamas.

"What's going on?" Ginny asked. She had just entered the room, with Luna in tow.

"Ron's still asleep." Neville replied.

Luna eyed Ron carefully, but didn't say anything.

Ginny, on the other hand, made her way to her brother's side and began shaking his shoulders.

"Wake-up!" Ginny exclaimed. Ron opened one eye, mumbled something, but Hermione couldn't make out what it was, and then closed his eyes and continued lying there.

A few more minutes passed, before a smile filled Hermione's face, and she went to stand beside Ginny.

"Ron..." Hermione said lightly. "You're missing a big victory party. The Chudley Cannons finally won..."

Ron sat-up quickly, eyes wide-open, and exclaimed, "What? They won?"

Beside Hermione, Ginny dissolved into a fit of giggles at her brother's excitement.

"That isn't funny." Ron groaned. "You got my hopes up."

Hermione smirked. "At least you're awake."

Ron tried to look upset, but Hermione could see that he was struggling to hold back a small smile.

"Anyways," Ginny said. "We'll meet you down by the car, all right?"

Ron nodded as Hermione left the room with the others.

The silence in the car was both nerve-racking and peaceful at the same time. Nerve-racking, because it allowed Hermione to dwell on the Death Eaters that were probably trying to locate them. Yet, it was also a peaceful and welcome change from the excitement of the previous day.

As she turned a corner, Hermione saw Harry's apartment building, though the sunlight cast a different look on it. She could now see that the neighbourhood looked friendly, but it was obviously lower class. Clearly, Harry hadn't made very much money at his job. Money, however, was not the only thing he had been deprived of, and certainly not the most important.

It had broken Hermione's heart to see how Harry had spent his life. Not knowing the truth about his parents, or Voldemort, or how many people truly cared about him.

She quickly parked, and made her way out of the car, and to the building along with Neville, Luna, Ginny and Ron.

When they reached Harry's apartment, Ron knocked on the door, and Harry quickly opened it.

The change in him was drastic and obvious.

The smiling young man that Hermione had seen come into the pub yesterday had been replaced with a weary-looking person, whose eyes were red, dark circles hanging under them.

"Hullo." He said dully.

Hermione exchanged a quick glance with Ron, and knew that he was thinking the same thing. It had not been a good idea to leave Harry alone overnight. It would only have given him time to dwell on a history he never knew of.

"Hi, Harry." Ginny replied, trying to sound happy and failing miserably. "How are you?"

Harry said, not meeting her eyes, "Fine. Anyway, I'm going with you now, right...?"

Hermione nodded, then lead them to the car.

* * *

It had been three days already, and Harry had barely spoken a word. His only comment had been one of amazement when Hermione had shrunken the car, and slipped it in her pocket before they boarded a boat. Other than that, he kept silent, with a far-off look in his eyes, only talking when he was spoken to. Hermione had even asked Ron to keep an eye out every night to see if Harry was still in his room at whichever hotel they were currently staying at. This trip had definitely taken its emotional toll on Harry, and she was beginning to worry that they had told him too much, too quickly. 

Nervously glancing in the rear-view mirror, Hermione saw Harry staring out the window, absently fiddling with his seat-belt. She secretly thought he looked as if he would suddenly pull it off, and jump out the window.

Fortunately, he didn't do that, so she kept on driving, listening to her friends' feeble attempts to help Harry. Neville and Ron had already both tried to engage him in some sort of conversation, about anything and everything from Quidditch to Muggle technology. Ginny, like Hermione, seemed to realize that he didn't want to talk, though they were both constantly asking him if he was all right. Luna appeared to be the only one that was content with leaving Harry alone to think about everything that he had learned.

Harry, however, was not the only one that was dwelling on Voldemort, and the tragic fate of James and Lily Potter. Hermione tried to concentrate all her thoughts on driving, but the road was almost entirely deserted and there was nothing to hold her interest. So, her mind kept drifting back to Hallowe'en, 1981, when Harry had miraculously survived the Killing Curse.

How he did it, she didn't know, but she was willing to bet that Professor Dumbledore did. Or, at least that he had an idea. While his eccentric ways may have fooled many, Hermione knew that the old man was very wise and had gained much knowledge that most of the other Order members didn't not have.

She hoped that he would share this knowledge with Harry. If anyone deserved to know the truth about things, it was certainly him. He should know why Voldemort was targeting his parents in the first place, why the Killing Curse hadn't worked, and, most importantly, why Professor Dumbledore thought that it was vital for him to return to the Wizarding World.

However, above all, even more important than the knowledge Harry deserved, was a chance for him to be a proper wizard. A chance to be part of the Wizarding World. A chance to make new friends. A chance to meet his parents' friends. A chance to meet people who had cared for him long ago.

A chance to feel as if he belonged.

* * *

The sun was setting, but Hermione continued driving, through the outskirts of London, right into the center of town. Neville and Ginny were both leaning back on their seats, sleeping quietly, while Ron and Luna were engaged in some bizarre conversation about the Chudley Cannons. Hermione didn't even want to know how Luna had gotten the idea that they were all Kelpies in disguise. 

She was looking around for the meeting place that had been agreed upon. Professor Dumbledore had told Hermione privately, before they left, that he would have an Order member stationed at the London meeting place at all times, to be on the look out for them _when_, not if, they arrived with Harry.

A small Muggle clothing boutique came into view, and Hermione remembered that they were supposed to meet in the alleyway next to it. She parked the car near a clump of other ones, so as not to draw attention to herself.

Ron and Luna fell silent, and Hermione nudged Neville awake. Harry seemed to realise that they were getting out here, so he gently tapped Ginny on the shoulder.

The six got out of the car, and headed for the alleyway, trying not to look suspicious. It probably didn't look good, Hermione reflected, that six young adults were entering a dark alleyway, just as night was approaching.

Hermione glanced side ways, looking for some sign of a witch or wizard. A man was standing in one corner, though she couldn't make out his face, as it was covered from the shadow of his hat.

She did, however, recognize his ginger-coloured hair.

"Mundungus." Ron said loudly, coming-up to greet him.

"Shh." Hermione warned.

"Nah, s'all right." Mundungus Fletcher said, smiling. "'Doubt anyone'll 'ear us."

Hermione decided it was best not to voice her apprehension, and just get right to the point. "What did Professor Dumbledore say we're supposed to do now?"

"'E gave me a portkey." Mundungus replied. "'E said it went to 'ogmeade station-"

Mundungus stopped abruptly, and Hermione followed his eyes to notice that he was staring at Harry.

"Er-" Harry began. "Hullo. I'm Harry Potter."

"O' course you are." Mundungus smiled. "Now, you wouldn't by chance fancy buying a new cauldron, would you? Special price, I tell you..."

Ignoring Ron and Ginny's muffled laughter, Hermione interrupted.

"Mundungus! This is no time for peddling stolen cauldrons!" She reprimanded.

"All right, sorry." He replied, though Hermione got the feeling that he didn't really mean it. He removed a tiny quill from the inside of his coat, and she took it from him. "That's the portkey."

"Are you coming with us?" Hermione asked.

"Sorry, I can't." He said, not meeting her eyes. "'Got a meeting with- er, with a fellow businessman."

Hermione wasn't sure she wanted to know what type of business people Mundungus interacted with.

She waved good-bye, as he Apparated away.

"This is a portkey." Hermione explained, turning to Harry. "If we all hold onto it, and one of us says the activation spell we'll be immediately transported to a pre-determined location."

Harry nodded, eyeing the portkey suspiciously, and grabbed hold of it.

Ron, Ginny, Neville and Luna also touched the portkey, and Hermione said clearly. "_Transportio!_"

The landscape changed, and she breathed a sigh of relief as the familiarity of Hogsmeade station came into view. No one was there to greet them, as Hermione had expected, so they made their way to the carriages.

Hermione entered the closest carriage, with Ron, Ginny, Neville and Luna following closely behind.

Harry was still standing outside, looking very nervous all of a sudden. Hermione couldn't tell exactly what he was staring at, but his eyes seemed to be focused on the front of the carriage, where invisible horses stood (according to _Hogwarts, A History_).

"Coming, Harry?" Ginny asked gently.

Harry gulped, and replied. "Er- right, of course."

He entered the carriage, eyes still occasionally glancing toward the spot where the horses stood. As he sat down, between Luna and Ginny, the carriage began to move.

Hermione was excited that she'd be able to see Hogwarts again after such a long time. She desperately missed the castle's tall turrets, and its magnificent architecture.

Ron, Ginny and Neville's eyes were all sparkling as the Hogwarts castle came into full view, illuminated by the moonlight.

"Wow." Harry breathed. He smiled for the first time in a while.

And Hermione couldn't help but do the same.

* * *

Thank you all for reading! Please review; comments and constructive criticism are very much appreciated.


	5. Chapter Five: Revelations

Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, would I really be publishing the stories on the internet for free? I think not.

Author's Notes: **A big thanks to everyone who reviewed! I'm very happy that you are all enjoying the story. Now, here's chapter five.

* * *

**

Chapter Five

Revelations

* * *

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

So, that was it. That was the school they had told him he would have gone to if he hadn't gone missing.

Harry felt his jaw drop as he looked at the tall castle, with its fantastic towers that seemed to go on forever. From the carriage, he could see the reflection of the moon, upon a large lake, its waters calm, though he could tell that something stirred beneath the surface.

"Wow." He whispered, not knowing what else to say.

Never, in his entire life, had he seen such an amazing sight. The Dursleys, in their constant attempts to pretend that he didn't exist, had not ever bothered to take him anywhere if it wasn't absolutely necessary (even then, they were reluctant to take him to the doctor's, unless he was practically dying.)

His teenage years in Ireland had been just as unproductive, though they were at least lacking the malice of his late relatives. When he reached adulthood, Harry had the opportunity to see much more, have more freedom. Yet, still, he hadn't ever been to a place as magnificent as this.

His eyes continued scanning the castle, until he heard Ginny, beside him.

"Amazing, isn't it?" She said, not looking him in the eye, as she was also focused on Hogwarts. "I've missed it a lot."

Harry nodded, not knowing what else to say.

He still didn't know what to believe. They had told him that magic existed, that he was a wizard. How was he supposed to believe strangers that just showed up suddenly? Yet, they knew things about him, things that they shouldn't.

He didn't understand why he had followed them here, why he hadn't refused to come, and insisted on staying in Dublin. In the back of his mind, he knew that he would be better off here, but he simply didn't know why.

The carriage abruptly came to a halt, and Ron and Hermione got out first, everyone else following closely behind.

Taking his eyes off the castle for a brief moment, Harry caught a glimpse of what had troubled him before he entered the carriages.

Horses were pulling the carriages back in the direction they had come from, but they weren't like any normal horse that Harry had ever seen.

Their skin was stretched tightly around the bones and muscles, making them look like skeletons. If it hadn't been for the moonlight, Harry probably wouldn't even have been able to see them, as their dark skin perfectly matched the colour of the night sky.

Looking away suddenly, Harry continued walking, with everyone else in front of him. Ron and Hermione were engaged in a conversation, and Ginny, Neville and Luna were still surveying the castle happily.

The large front doors to the castle were quickly approaching, and Harry grew nervous as he walked up the steps.

The doors were already open, and Harry paused for a moment when he finally entered the castle.

If the outside was fabulous, it was nothing compared to the inside. The stone walls were carved with intricate patterns, and designs, and the ceiling was enormous. There were passages going in every direction, and Harry swore that he had seen a person in a portrait move.

"Welcome to Hogwarts." Ron said, grinning largely.

"It's incredible..." Harry replied, still marvelling at the castle.

"Come on, we'll take you to see Dumbledore." Ginny said, leading the way.

Harry walked quickly, falling into step beside Hermione, who immediately began talking about the castle.

"Hogwarts was created over a thousand years ago, Harry." She said quickly. "Godric Gryffindor, Salazar Slytherin, Helga Hufflepuff and Rowena Ravenclaw all wished that there could be a school to educate young wizards and witches, to help them learn how to properly use their magic.

"They were four of the greatest wizards and witches of that age, and worked together to create the castle, hoping that it would be the answer to all their wishes..."

Hermione kept speaking, though Harry was now only picking-up bits and pieces. She mentioned some more things about the Founders, and the troubles they had encountered, then continued to talk about the rest of the history of the school. It was far too much information for Harry to take in right now, especially considering that he hadn't slept in days.

Somehow, the feuds among the Founders, and the more recent additions to Hogwarts, seemed insignificant when compared to the other information he had learned. About himself. About Voldemort. About his parents.

Harry was pulled from his thoughts when he noticed that Hermione had grown silent, and everyone had stopped walking. They were now standing in front of a humongous stone gargoyle.

"Pepper Imps." Ginny said, and the gargoyle began to move.

Pepper Imps, he supposed, was the password to somewhere. Still, it was a very odd password to use, and Harry wondered what it meant...

"Don't ask." Ron said quietly, looking at Harry's confused expression.

The stone gargoyle had moved enough to reveal a staircase, and Harry began to climb, after everyone else.

Finally, they reached a door, with a large Griffin in the center.

Ginny knocked on the door, and they waited a moment for it to open.

In the doorway stood a very strict-looking woman, and though she was old, it was clear that she still had plenty of strength and energy.

"Hi, Professor." Ginny smiled.

Hermione also greeted her. "Hello, Professor McGonagall."

"Hello." Professor McGonagall's thin lips curved into a small smile. Her eyes scanned on the group, before resting upon Harry.

Harry felt nervous under her gaze, though he managed to keep eye contact.

"Mr. Potter." She said, her expression a mixture of surprise and relief. "Please, come in."

Harry entered the office apprehensively, and heard the other five follow him before the door closed.

A few people gasped when they saw him, and others simply looked on, in shock. Harry looked to the floor of the office, trying to ignore the intense stares of everyone in the room.

"Welcome, Harry." A greeting came from a male voice, at the desk in the center of the office, and Harry looked up to see an old man, smiling at him.

Old might have been a slight understatement. The man's white hair and beard fell below his waist, and his face was filled with wrinkles. What Harry noticed most, however, were the old man's sparkling blue eyes, hidden behind half-moon spectacles.

"I am Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts." He continued, his face expressing only happiness, not the shock of the other occupants of the room. "I presume that you have already been told quite a bit about Hogwarts, and your past?"

"Yes, sir." Harry nodded.

"Very well." Dumbledore smiled. "I suppose I should introduce you to everyone."

Dumbledore gestured towards a tall, red-headed man in the corner. "This is Arthur Weasley. He works at the Ministry of Magic."

"Very nice to meet you." Mr. Weasley said, leaving his shocked expression for one of happiness and warmth.

"You, too, sir." Harry replied.

"This is Professor Severus Snape." Dumbledore continued, now gesturing toward an unfriendly man, with greasy, black hair and pale skin. "He is the Potions Master."

"Hello, nice to meet you." Harry said, eyeing the man cautiously.

Snape merely nodded in reply, and glared menacingly. Harry found himself wishing he hadn't even made an effort to be polite.

Lastly, Dumbledore came to a man, whose grey-streaked brown hair and tired face seemed far too old for his age.

"This, Harry, is Remus Lupin." Dumbledore said

"Hello." Harry greeted, hoping the man would be more friendly than Snape.

He smiled, and Harry noticed that Lupin was studying him closely. "Hello, Harry," he said, his voice quiet and reserved.

"Now," Dumbledore resumed his speech, "please sit down, Harry." He gestured toward a chair, and Harry sat. "I believe that we have plenty of things that need to be discussed. First of all, what do you know so far?"

"I'm a wizard." Harry hoped he sounded confident, because he still didn't entirely believe the words that were coming out of his mouth.

"And, do you believe this?" Dumbledore asked.

Harry's eyes widened, as the Headmaster seemed to have read his mind. "Yes... well, I mean, it sort of makes sense, but it _is_ hard to believe."

"I see." Dumbledore nodded. "I assure you that this is the truth, Harry. As hard to believe as it may seem, you are magical, like your parents, and everyone else in this room. However, there is much more to your history than that. Please, forgive me if I mention something that you have already been told.

"From 1970 until 1981, the Wizarding World was involved in a war, against the dark wizard, Voldemort." Many people in the room flinched, though Dumbledore didn't seem to notice. "Toward the end of the war, you and your parents became a target of his."

"Why me?" Harry interrupted, wondering what could cause a dark wizard to be concerned with an innocent baby. Many people in the room seemed to have suddenly gained interest in Dumbledore's speech, as though they were also unaware of the answer to Harry's question.

Dumbledore sighed deeply, before speaking again. "That, I am afraid, is a question that requires a very complex answer, one which I am not sure that I can give you completely at this point in time.

"What I can tell you, however, is that Voldemort somehow got the idea that later on in your life you would become a threat to him. He began working tirelessly to locate you and your parents, in an attempt to kill you when you were young."

Harry didn't understand how Voldemort could get an idea like that, and he doubted that the dark wizard's concern had been entirely valid. However, he continued listening.

"When he finally found the three of you, it was on Hallowe'en of 1981."

Harry nodded knowingly.

Dumbledore didn't continued speaking for a moment, instead looking around the room, and the various witches and wizards.

Professor McGonagall seemed to have gotten his point. "We'd best leave now." She said, addressing everyone else. No one dared argue, so they followed her out of the office, some of them smiling at Harry and Dumbledore, before leaving.

The door shut, and Dumbledore resumed speaking. "Though I was not there, I knew your parents very well, and I don't doubt that they fought bravely against him, trying to protect you until the end."

Harry looked away, trying to concentrate on what else Dumbledore was saying, and not the tragic deaths of his parents.

"Finally, he approached you and attempted the Killing Curse, which he had become quite skilled at casting at that point, but the curse did not work. Instead, it hit you, leaving you with that scar, and rebounded upon Voldemort.

"During his lifetime, Voldemort had become obsessed with the concept of immortality, of a life in which death was not an option. Over the years, he worked on various spells and enchantments to prevent his death. Thus, when the curse struck him, it removed the life from him, but did not manage to kill him." Harry wasn't sure if he completely understood what he was being told, but listened intently anyway. "He became something of a spirit, neither living nor dead."

"Sir, why didn't the curse work?" Harry asked, finally voicing the question that had been on his mind for a while.

Dumbledore sighed heavily. "Your mother, I believe, may have played a large part in that."

Harry raised an eyebrow, waiting for the Headmaster to explain further.

"You see, when your mother died, she was trying to protect you. The love that she had for you stayed with you even after her death. That love, the love that caused her to be willing to die to give you a chance at a happy life, gave you protection from Voldemort."

Harry nodded, not meeting Dumbledore's eyes. He really hoped the Headmaster wouldn't notice that his eyes were suddenly quite wet.

"Harry, I am very sorry that you have had to endure a life without a proper, caring family, just as I am sorry that I did not manage to find you sooner." Dumbledore spoke quietly.

Harry nodded once more, though he managed to meet Dumbledore's eyes this time. "He's back now, right? Voldemort, I mean." He asked.

"Yes, I'm afraid he is." Dumbledore answered, his voice taking on an even more sad tone. "It would seem that your disappearance had a great deal to do with that. When you were found in Ireland, you were bleeding, correct?"

"Yeah." Harry said, wondering how the Headmaster already knew this.

"I believe that Voldemort may have found some ancient method of creating a body for himself, with the use of your blood." Dumbledore continued.

"There's a way to come back from the dead?" Harry said, eyes widening.

"Ah, remember what I said before, Harry." Dumbledore replied. "Voldemort was never truly dead."

"Right." Harry answered, looking down, and feeling quite foolish that he had asked Dumbledore that question.

"Now, Harry, I believe we must discuss your future. You have been away from the Wizarding World for nearly eighteen years, and have had time to develop a life of your own, one vastly different from anything in this world." Dumbledore said. "I must ask you, do you wish to return to the life you have already begun, or stay here and live as a wizard?"

Harry had an eerie feeling that Dumbledore already knew what he would say, but he answered anyway. "I want to stay here. I have nothing in Ireland."

"I see." Dumbledore replied, getting up from his chair. "Now, I should probably show you where you will be temporarily staying."

Harry also got up, and followed the Headmaster out of the office.

* * *

A few hours later, Harry was sitting quietly, staring out the window at the night sky. He had been offered a room at Hogwarts for a few weeks, until a more permanent residence was found. His room was quite large, decorated in red and gold, with a four-poster bed. 

Unable to sleep, Harry had stayed up, thinking about the events of the past few days.

He tried to focus on the Wizarding World as a whole, and the fact that he was a wizard. He tried thinking of how he was leaving behind his past in Ireland. He tried thinking of all the new people he had met, and of the new places he had been.

Yet, still, his mind always went back to one thing. His parents.

They died protecting him, Dumbledore had said. If he hadn't been born, if he didn't exist, they would still be alive, and happy.

He couldn't shake the feelings of guilt that were engulfing him. He wished that somehow, he could go back in time and change everything, but he knew it was impossible. He felt obligated, though, to do something.

It was his fault that they were dead.

That wasn't the only thing that was his fault, though. He had played a part in Voldemort's rebirth. He _knew_ that he never intended to help Voldemort, but he had been a part of whatever method had brought the Dark Lord back. His blood was coursing through the veins of that evil wizard, and was helping to keep him alive.

Harry stood-up straight, removing his hands from the windowsill. He crossed the room, and shook his head, trying to rid it of those thoughts.

Harry paced around the room for a moment, until he had finally managed to clear his head. He glanced at the clock, barely registering the fact that it was far past midnight.

Turning around he came face to face with his reflection in the mirror, and stepped closely, surveying the image he saw.

His eyes were bloodshot, and it was clear that it had been a while since he'd slept. What he noticed the most, however, was not on the outside. When he looked in the mirror, he felt, for the first time, as if he was truly looking at a wizard.

Yes, they had told him days ago that he was a wizard, but he either hadn't been able to believe it, or hadn't fully comprehended it. Now, standing in Hogwarts, he felt as if it was actually true. Even the castle itself seemed to radiate magic.

It was overwhelming.

He didn't know how to deal with this, or what he was supposed to do. Backing away, he felt the back of his knees hit the bed, and he sank down onto it, finally letting everything soak in.

Everything was actually true. All of it. This was not some big joke, or lie. He was going to learn how to use magic, to spend the rest of his life in the Wizarding World, and to be surrounded by people that actually cared about him.

He rested his head on the pillow, and closed his eyes, smiling slightly at the prospect of a better life.

I'm really a wizard, was the last though that went through his head before he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Thanks for reading! Please review; comments and constructive criticism welcome.


	6. Chapter Six: The Reality of War

Disclaimer: Harry and Co. belong to JKR, not me.

Author's Notes: I'm so sorry about the delay. Then again, I'm not entirely certain that an apology is enough for a year-long wait, but I was really busy. I'll try to be better, and have a least one chapter up per month (especially since Book 6 is coming out soon, and something in this story is bound to be contradicted by then.

* * *

Chapter Six

The Reality of War

* * *

Diagon Alley was always a busy place, and the next morning it was particularly packed full of wizards and witches. Under ordinary circumstances, Ron probably wouldn't have considered this the ideal state in which to visit Diagon Alley, but the reason that they were there was far from ordinary.

Ron, along with Hermione, Mad-Eye Moody, Nymphadora Tonks and Kingsley Shacklebolt, was here to guard Harry in the unlikely (at least, Ron hoped it was unlikely) event that any Death Eaters made an appearance. The busy state of Diagon Alley was perfect for this because they would be able to blend in much more easily and avoid notice that they may have received if they were the only ones there. Still, you could never be too cautious, so they had all made a large effort to try and go unnoticed: Moody was constantly shoving his bowler hat lower and lower, in an attempt to conceal his attention-grabbing magical eye, and, after much nagging from Hermione, Tonks had agreed to sport a slightly less outrageous hair colour than she usually would have.

Dumbledore had informed them that all they had to do was take Harry to Ollivander's for a Wand, and bring him back to Hogwarts immediately. Ron hadn't been told exactly what was going on, but from the bits and pieces of conversations that he had heard, he could tell that some sort of training was going to begin for Harry.

Ron was pulled out of his thoughts as he felt Hermione nudge him and realised that they were already at Ollivander's.

He went to reach for the door handle, but Kingsley stopped him. "The four of you can stand guard here," he ordered. "I'll go in with Harry."

Ron nodded and watched as Kingsley lead Harry into the shop, before he turned to Hermione.

"Do you really think that Dumbledore can do this? Train Harry, I mean." Ron asked tentatively.

Hermione considered the question for a moment. "Harry's an exceptional wizard. At least, I assume that he is given everything that happened with Voldemort. If Professor Dumbledore thinks he can be trained, he probably can be."

"But still," Ron objected, "even if he is an exceptional wizard, it'll be tough. You're an exceptional witch and you still had to go through all seven years at Hogwarts."

Hermione sighed, but didn't say anything. For the first time since he had met her, Ron thought she looked genuinely stumped.

* * *

"Really, you can go," Tonks informed Ron and Hermione for the millionth time. "Dumbledore didn't say that Harry needed this many guards, anyway."

Ron and Hermione were expected at the Burrow for supper soon, and it didn't seem as if they'd be able to make it in time. Harry had been in shop for over three hours, still trying to find the perfect wand. Kingsley had come out only a few minutes ago, and told them that it looked like the task may take quite a bit longer than originally expected.

Hermione shook her head stubbornly. "No, Tonks. What if something happens? We've got to be here to help protect Harry. Even if Professor Dumbledore didn't think it was _necessary_ for all of us to be here, it's still a good idea."

"You-Know-Who isn't likely to attack, especially considering that he doesn't know what we're doing yet," Tonks argued. "He can't have figured out that we're found Harry Potter; only the Order knows so far."

Hermione glanced at Ron, as though she was looking for some help.

"Tonks is right, you know. Everything will be perfectly fine. The guard was just a precaution." He said apprehensively.

Hermione opened her mouth, looking like she was about to argue, but eventually seemed to have decided against it. "I suppose it would be all right if we left. Just for a little while, though. We'll have supper with your family, and come back here right after if Harry hasn't found a wand yet. Besides, it wouldn't be polite to skip supper. You mum will start to worry about us, and Fred and George will make stupid comments regarding what could have had us so _occupied_."

Hermione's last comment caused Ron to grin and blush at the same time.

"All right, then," He replied. "See you later."

"We'll be right back after dinner," said Hermione. "Bye Tonks, Mad-Eye."

Tonks gave a small wave, and Mad-Eye nodded his head, though he kept one eye focused on Ollivander's and one focused on everyone shopping in Diagon Alley.

A second later, Ron and Hermione had Apparated to the front step of the Burrow. Wards had been put up to prevent anyone from Apparating directly into the house (it was standard security for the homes of all Order members,) so they'd have to ring the doorbell.

The front door opened quickly, and they were ushered in by Ron's dad and Ginny.

"Hello, Mr. Weasley." Hermione grinned. "Hi, Ginny."

"Hi." Ginny said, hugging both Hermione and Ron. "Supper's almost ready. And we've got a surprise."

"A surprise?" Ron asked. "What is it?"

"If I told you," Ginny laughed, "it wouldn't be a surprise, now would it?"

Ron chose to ignore this comment, and he followed his dad and Ginny into the living room.

His dad took a seat beside Percy, starting a conversation, but not getting much of a response, as Percy was engrossed in a rather large and dusty book, and Ginny headed for the other end of the room and sat down beside-

"Charlie?" Ron exclaimed, nearly bumping into Hermione, who was standing in front of him.

Charlie's grin was wide as he rose from his seat and gave Ron a one-armed hug. "Hey, I haven't seen you in a while."

Ron just blinked, and finally managed to get out a sentence. "What are you doing here?"

"What, aren't you going to tell me how wonderful it is to see me? That you've missed me so much?" He said, winking. "Anyway, I'm taking a much-needed vacation."

"That's great!" Ron smiled, then realised that Hermione was still standing beside them awkwardly. "Charlie, you remember Hermione, right?"

"'Course I do," Charlie replied, shaking Hermione's hand. "You only include her in every letter you write."

Ron could feel his ears turning red, but was happy to see the grin on Hermione's face.

"It's nice to see you again, Charlie." She said. "How has your work been? I was reading an article on Dragon breeding a few weeks ago, and I was curious about-"

Hermione continued talking to Charlie, but Ron felt his father (who had apparently given up on his conversation with Percy,) pull him aside.

"Are you all right?" His dad asked, a great deal of concern present in his voice, though Ron had no clue why.

"Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?" Ron said, puzzled.

He let out a sigh of relief. "Ginny was telling us about the fight this afternoon. She got us all quite worried, when she told us about Lucius Malfoy."

Ron had no clue why they would have been worried. "Yeah, we were duelling. But Ginny managed to disarm him, so he Apparated away."

His dad shifted uncomfortably. "I guess you didn't hear," he said quietly. "As she disarmed him, Ginny managed to hear what Malfoy was saying."

Ron fixed his father with a questioning look, hoping he'd elaborate.

"Malfoy had started to cast the Killing Curse."

Ron just stood there for a moment, letting the knowledge sink in. Lucius Malfoy had nearly killed him; if it hadn't been for Ginny, he would probably be dead right now. Very few wizards or witches were powerful enough to manage the Killing Curse, but there was no doubt in Ron's mind that Malfoy was one of those few. And, he had almost succeeded- without Ron ever realising it. _How could I not have known?_

"Oh." He finally said, uncertain about what else there was to say.

A moment passed in silence before Ron's dad finally spoke. "Well, I just wanted to make sure you were all right..." He paused for a second, then continued. "I think I'll go help your mother in the kitchen."

Ron nodded, watching his father walk away. He didn't move for a few minutes, just standing there and reflecting on what he had been told, before pushing all thoughts of nearly dying out of his head.

* * *

Nearly a half hour later, Ron was seated between Hermione and Charlie at the table, staring blankly at his empty plate.

"Honestly, where are they?" His mum said, the exasperation in her voice clear. "They're always late, but not usually this late."

As this was the first time that Charlie had been home in a while, Ron's mum insisted that supper be special and that they wait for everyone. The only problem, of course, was that Fred and George were supposed to be here, and expecting them to be responsible was like expecting the Chudley Cannons to win a Quidditch match: you'd always have that sense of hope, but in your heart you knew it would never happen.

"Relax, Mum." Charlie replied calmly. "They're probably just busy at the shop. Besides, I'll see them later; I'm going to be here for a whole week. Let's just eat, okay?"

Everyone nodded eagerly, as though they had been starved all day, but Ron was only barely awake that he was even cutting his roast beef. The same phrase kept replaying over and over again in his mind: _I could have died, I could have died_. Ron was also vaguely aware that Hermione had put down her knife and was staring at him curiously, but he purposely avoided looking at her, and concentrated on appearing to be interested in Charlie and Ginny's conversation.

Finally, Hermione seemed to have gotten fed-up. "Ron, what's wrong?" She whispered, leaning closer slightly.

"Nothing," he said, shaking his head, "I'm just a bit tired. You know, we only got back yesterday."

Hermione narrowed her eyes. "Are you sure that's all?"

"Yeah," Ron replied, knowing perfectly well that he wasn't convincing Hermione in the least.

Fortunately, she didn't press the matter and only nodded slightly.

Barely a moment later, the doorbell rang, and Ron's mum rushed to answer it, muttering "It's about time!" under her breath.

Ron could just barely make out the voices from the doorway.

"My God, what happened?" His mum gasped.

"Attack-" one of the twins (Ron thought it was George) said hurriedly.

The other twin was talking over him, "-Dementors."

The table had suddenly fell silent, everyone intently listening to the conversation, and a moment later Ron's mum walked in with Fred and George, who were visibly shaken.

"What's happened?" Ginny was the first to speak and her fear was evident.

Fred answered, seeming to have calmed down slightly now. "Dementors attacked Diagon Alley; I'd say there were at least a dozen of them."

Ron immediately felt as if he were going to fall over, and he saw Hermione's eyes widen beside him. "Was anybody kissed?" She asked, her voice resembling a shriek. Ron noticed that her hands were shaking and was unsurprised when he realised that his were shaking as well.

"I don't know." George sighed, as he sat down at the table. "People from the Ministry showed-up quickly, and everyone who wasn't hurt was told to leave."

"You two are all right, though?" Charlie asked, laying a comforting hand on Fred's shoulder.

"Of course we are, Charlie." Fred replied. A few seconds later, his head snapped up. "Wait, Charlie? What are you doing here?"

"He's on vacation for a week, but that's not important right now." Ron mum's said hurriedly. "What's important is that you two go and get some rest right now."

"Mum, really, we're fine-" Fred had started to argue, but Ron could tell that his brother's efforts would be pointless; there was simply no arguing with their Mum, especially when she was concerned about her family's health.

"Nonsense, you two need your sleep. And don't bother going to your flat, you're staying here tonight." She replied, ushering them both upstairs before they could say anything else. For a brief moment, Ron thought he had seen a look of relief in both the twins' faces.

No one spoke until she had come back downstairs, and suggested that they all get some sleep. Ron's dad and Percy said that they'd rather check in at the Ministry to see if there was anything needed of them, and Charlie had offered to stay awake in case Dumbledore tried contacting any of them in the middle of the night. Hermione had left quickly, with nothing more than a small "Good-bye" and kiss on the cheek, but the look in her eyes told Ron that she was just as worried about Harry; even so, the attack was over now, and there wasn't anything they could do but wait.

* * *

Hours later, Ron lay in bed, not having slept at all. There was something about everything that had happened during the day that made the war seem more real than it ever had before. When he had been at Hogwarts, it had been easy to avoid the reality of what was going on in the world, and immerse himself in the small school community. Even the attack on the Burrow months ago hadn't seemed all that frightening, as the Order had somehow gotten word of it, and had been there soon enough to allow everyone to leave the house. While Dumbledore had obviously felt that the Weasley family was enough of a target that they should all be in the Order, Ron hadn't truly ever felt the danger. 

But today, everything had changed within a matter of hours; not only had he discovered that he had nearly been killed only a few days before, but he had narrowly missed the Diagon Alley attack. Not that he was grateful he had left, of course. If it turned out that someone had indeed been hurt, he didn't know what he'd do. _Especially since I was the one who wanted to leave... _I_ was the one who convinced Hermione that we should go._

Ron was struggling to not think about that, but his mind seemed intent on focusing on either the attack or his own near-death. Neither option was particularly attractive, though the latter troubled Ron slightly more; not because it was any worse, but because he couldn't place exactly why it had bothered him. He hadn't actually died, obviously, so he didn't know why it should worry him so much since he was perfectly fine. _After all, I only _nearly_ died. No reason to dwell on it, really._

It was going to be a long night.

* * *

Questions? Comments? Please review!


	7. Chapter Seven: An Important Decision

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns and created Harry Potter. I'm really not brilliant enough to come-up with someone like him.

Author's Notes: A big thanks to everyone who reviewed! I'm really trying to update this story every few weeks (although I realise that I can't possibly finish before book 6 comes out.)

* * *

Chapter Seven

An Important Decision

* * *

The whole world looked dark from where he was lying; there were only a few bright spots in the room, but his eyes hurt far too much to focus on them. His head was aching, and he tried to lift his hand to his forehead, but he barely had enough energy to move his fingers. He heard a quiet sound, possibly a voice, but his mind was too exhausted to comprehend what it had been.

"Harry?"

He wanted to answer, but all that came out was a small groan.

"Harry?"

He forced himself to fully open his eyes, and look in the direction of the voice.

A man with a familiar face was standing over him. He looked fairly young, but his hair was streaked with grey. Harry had been introduced to him a couple days ago in Dumbledore's office, but he honestly couldn't remember what the man's name had been. All he knew was that the man had just called someone else over, and the next thing Harry knew, he was being asked a series of questions by a woman he didn't know.

"Are you dizzy at all? Does your head ache?" The woman asked him.

"Yeah," he mumbled.

"Any other symptoms?"

"Mm-hmm... sore... everywhere."

"Yes, of course, you'll just need some rest. You hit your head quite hard when you fell down. Oh, no, don't get up!" She ordered, as he tried to lift himself. "You must stay in bed!"

Harry nodded. He didn't know who this woman was, but he had a feeling that he'd be better off not arguing.

She took a moment to adjust his pillow, then left.

Harry laid his head back and breathed in and out slowly, hoping that the world would stop spinning soon, then turned to the man that was still standing next to his bed.

He had a concerned look on his face. "You probably don't remember me, I'm Remus"

"Lupin, right. I remember now." Harry replied. "What are you doing here?"

"Professor Dumbledore thought that someone should be here whenever you woke-up. We've been waiting in shifts for the past two days."

_Two days?_ Harry thought. _I've been unconscious for two days?_ "That really wasn't necessary. I'm perfectly fine now."

Lupin fixed him with a questioning look. "Really? Perfectly fine?"

"Mm-hmm." Harry said, not quite meeting his eyes.

"I see." Lupin replied, though Harry was certain that he didn't believe him.

After a moment of silence (during which Harry's head stopped spinning slightly) Lupin spoke again. "I suppose that you're wondering about what happened in Diagon Alley."

Harry looked away suddenly. "Uh, yeah, I guess." Having only been awake for a few moments, Harry hadn't had a lot of time to think about Diagon Alley, but he definitely wanted to find out what had happened. He was quite grateful that Lupin had mentioned the incident, as Harry didn't know how he'd be able to ask why he'd heard voices in his head and fainted suddenly.

"It seems that Voldemort found out about your presence there, and sent magical creatures called Dementors after you." Lupin paused, giving Harry a chance to take in what he was hearing. "Dementors live in dark, cold places and feed off of happiness and hope. If someone were to get too close to a Dementor, all good thoughts would be drained from them. For the time being, all they'd have would be their worst memories, filled with depression or anger."

Harry wasn't quite sure what this had to do with what happened at Diagon Alley, but he was listening anyway.

"In the presence of a Dementor, someone would also loose touch with what was happening around them. Their vision would become hazy and all they'd be able to focus on would be those bad memories. The person's mind would just replay their worst memory over and over again."

"Oh." That certainly explained why Harry had fainted. "Wouldum, if a Dementor were near, would a person remember bad memories that they weren't able to remember before? Like... from when they were really young?"

Lupin had a look of realisation on his face. "Ah. Yes, I suppose that their mind would be able to recall those memories, even if it couldn't under ordinary circumstances." He paused awkwardly. "Of course, the worst memory would have to be especially bad for them to remember it after such a long time..." Lupin trailed off, and he looked at Harry as though silently asking what his worst memory was.

Harry ignored the unspoken question.

* * *

A few hours later, Harry was still lying in bed, in what he had been told was the hospital wing at Hogwarts. The woman - Harry though he had heard someone call her Madam Pomfrey - had returned a couple of times and given him various potions which, although foul-tasting, did seem to dull the ache in his head. No one was staying with him now; Lupin said he had somewhere to be and hoped that Harry would feel better soon. He had also asked if Harry had anymore questions about Dementors or the attack in Diagon Alley, but Harry couldn't think of anything.

After Lupin left, Harry was alone, thinking about what he had heard when the Dementors came close. There had been a high-pitched laugh... and a woman begging for Harry's life, then screaming in pain. The woman must have been Harry's mother. He didn't have a clue how he knew this, but he just did. It was more of a feeling than anything else. He knew that he had heard the sound of his mother pleading to save his life.

Harry wouldn't have thought that would be his worst memory. After all, he'd only been a baby at the time, and was a baby really able to comprehend life and death? If anything, he thought he would have at least have heard his Uncle Vernon's death. He hadn't liked his uncle, but he _had_ grown-up with the man and it seemed natural to Harry that his uncle's death would be his worst memory; at least it was something he could remember. Yet, he couldn't deny that he had never felt as terrible as he had when he heard his mother's scream, as clearly as it must have been on the day she died.

It wasn't fair that all of this was happening. Why was Harry even here, anyway? He thought there had been a chance for a better life, one where he'd at least be able to live in the world that his parents had lived in. But he couldn't see how this life could be better if in less than a week, the only thing he had found out about his parents was what they sounded like when they died.

Harry sat up slowly and got off of the bed, wincing slightly as he was still sore. He pulled at the curtains, careful to be quiet, and glanced around the hospital wing to see if anyone was there. He couldn't see anyone, but Madam Pomfrey was probably nearby, so he'd have to leave quickly. Harry didn't know exactly where he was going, or what he was doing, but he knew that he couldn't just stay here and think about his parents' deaths.

He walked out of the hospital wing as quickly as he could without making any noise, and checked the corridors outside to make sure that no one was there. There were only a few torches lit, probably because the school wasn't in use during the summer. Harry held onto the walls as he walked, as he still felt quite off-balance. He hoped that he'd be able to find his way around; it shouldn't be too difficult if he could just find the Entrance Hall, or Dumbledore's office. However, the longer he walked around, the more difficult it seemed to be to find out where he was going. Harry wasn't even certain he would be able to get back to the hospital wing if he'd wanted to.

He was starting to regret his decision to leave, when he heard an extremely loud laugh. Harry looked around quickly, hoping he'd be able to see who the laugh had come from, but it was no use in the dark corridors. The laughing continued, even louder than before, and Harry was beginning to wonder if he was hallucinating. Had he really hit his head that hard?

All of a sudden, something wet dropped down on Harry and soaked his entire body. He blinked for a moment, and wiped what seemed to be water from his face, wondering who, or what, had soaked him. He tried to look around again and still couldn't see anything. Something else dropped down on him, though it didn't feel like water.

_Paint?_ Harry thought, squinting to see what had fallen on him.

He didn't know what he could possibly do now as he was being attacked (in quite a childish manner) by something he couldn't even see. Whoever it was, they briefly stopped dropping things down on Harry, and just as he breathed a sigh of relief, he realised that the invisible person had just been busy putting out the only lit torch in the whole corridor. Now he couldn't see anything at all.

Harry fumbled around the corridor, hoping to find something helpful.

_Why isn't there a light switch in this place?_ He thought, frustrated. The only thing he could find was the wand he'd got from Diagon Alley, in his pocket, but he didn't know what good that would be since he hadn't learned any magic. Even so, he took it out of his pocket and waved it around, hoping to be able to do something, _anything_. It didn't seemed to be working, though, so he put it away as he felt something else be poured on him from above, though he couldn't tell what he was.

Clearly, there was nothing he could do but try to leave. He ran as fast as he could, no longer caring which direction he was heading in. Just when the sounds of the invisible person seemed to be coming from further away, he slipped on something and hit the floor roughly. His wand fell from his pocket, and he searched the floor for it. He knew that it wasn't any good, but it was the only thing that he had.

The invisible person was close again, and laughing even more madly. "So, _so_ much fun!" It cackled. "And during the Summerthis is an especially good treat!"

Harry had no clue what else he could do. He obviously couldn't fight someone that he couldn't see. He didn't seem to be in any particular danger, but it would certainly be humiliating if he just stayed here until someone found him.

Nothing good had happened in the past week, and Harry just wanted to leave this entire experience behind. He just wanted to get away from this stupid prankster, wanted to leave this castle and this world, wanted to forget the sound of his mother screaming as life was ripped from her, to

Light suddenly streamed from his wand, which was lying a few metres away from him.

Harry blinked and stared at the wand. He hadn't even touched it, or said anything, so how had it lit up?

There was no time to ponder what had happened, so Harry just grabbed the wand and ran as fast as he could.

He turned a corner, and nearly bumped into a suit of armour, then continued running. A few minutes later he could no longer hear the laughter, and stopped to catch his breath, clutching his chest. Running around in dark corridors probably wasn't the greatest thing to do after spending two days unconscious.

Harry looked around, trying to figure out how he could get back to the hospital wing, or at least if there was a way to find someone who would help him. He didn't know where he was now, but the corridor looked different from the others. Everything seemed even darker, if it was possible, and Harry didn't dare try and wake any of the people in the paintings, who were, apparently, asleep. He was far too tired to even comprehend how he would begin asking a painting for directions.

There was a door ajar nearby, and Harry walked into the room, hoping he'd be able to find somebody. He closed the door behind him. It seemed to be an especially large storage room, filled with an odd assortment of things that Harry couldn't identify. They looked similar to some of the things that had lined the windows of shops in Diagon Alley a few days before. Harry moved closer to inspect the contents of some of the jars. There were unusual looking liquids, and variety of weird things. Harry didn't even want to know what creature the pair of eyeballs had come from.

He didn't hear the footsteps that came from the corridor outside, or the sound of the door opening, but he did hear the cold voice that came from behind him.

"Ah, Potter. Yes, it figures that _you_ would be sneaking around in the middle of the night, and snooping through the potions supplies. Shouldn't you be in the hospital wing, or is precious Potter too perfect for medical care?"

Harry turned around slowly, and came face to face with Snape, the greasy-haired man he had met in Dumbledore's office. If it was possible, he looked even colder than he had on that day.

"Well, what are you doing here? And why on Earth do you look like that?" Snape said, looking at him with disgust.

"I got lost, Sir, and something started throwing things at me." Harry replied, trying not to be intimidated.

"That must have been Peeves the Poltergeist. But how did you get lose? Did you think yourself too good to ask one of the paintings for directions?"

Harry didn't reply, but he felt his cheeks redden. He _had_ avoided asking for directions, but not because he thought he was too good; he was just having enough trouble understanding that paintings could be alive at all.

"Follow me, Potter. I'm sure someone must be looking for you by now." Snape said, turning and quickly walking out of the storage room.

Harry followed him in silence, not wanting to talk to the man, and knowing that he wouldn't get a pleasant reply even if he did. In a few moments, he was starting to recognize the corridors and as they turned a corner, Harry saw the large entrance to the hospital wing.

"I trust that even you aren't stupid enough to get lost from here to the entrance." Snape snarled. He left without giving Harry a chance to reply.

Harry walked to the hospital wing, and entered apprehensively. Within a few seconds, Madam Pomfrey had realised that he was there, and had approached him, along with a stern-looking woman whom Harry had never met.

"You shouldn't have left!" Madam Pomfrey lectured. "What on Earth were you thinking? You should _not_ be out of bed."

Harry was about to reply, when the other woman spoke.

"Actually, Albus thinks that he will be fine outside of the hospital wing, as long as he's resting." The woman informed her.

Madam Pomfrey didn't seem to agree with this, but didn't argue. Personally, Harry thought this was a wise choice as he knew that he would not argue with someone who looked so strict. "Well, I trust Albus' judgement. But where is he supposed to go, Minerva?"

"He can stay in the room that he slept in on his first night in the castle." She replied.

"Harry, can you find your way back to the room?" Madam Pomfrey asked, turning back to him.

He shook his head. "Sorry."

"Minerva, can you show him the way?" The woman nodded, and Madam Pomfrey continued speaking. "Harry, this is Professor McGonagall, the Transfiguration teacher here at Hogwarts."

Harry nodded. He had no clue what Transfiguration was, but held out his hand anyway.

McGonagall shook his hand, and her lips formed a very, _very_ small smile, which Harry was certain didn't often appear on her face.

She led him quickly to his room, but looked behind her occasionally to ensure that he was keeping up. It seemed that she, unlike Snape, took into consideration the fact that he wasn't familiar with the castle.

When they arrived at his room, she opened the door and told him that he'd best get some rest.

"Also, you should know that Professor Dumbledore will be able to find you if you try to leave again. It's your choice, of course, whether or not you want to stay. Just make sure that you are making the right choice."

Harry didn't know what to say.

* * *

Harry didn't sleep peacefully like he had the last time he stayed in the room. He changed into one of the pairs of pyjamas he had brought from Dublin (his current clothes were still covered in a rainbow of paint colours, as well as what appeared to be honey), and simply lay in bed for what seemed like ages, before finally drifting off into a very restless sleep. He woke in the middle of the night, heart pounding, his mother's scream ringing in his ears. Looking out of the window, he noticed that the sun was rising. He briefly considered leaving the room, but he'd probably get lost anyway. Besides, McGonagall had made it clear that if he choose to leave, he'd eventually be found and at least have to explain why he wanted to go.

It wouldn't be an easy thing to explain, especially considering that Harry had nowhere to go. He didn't think the Wizarding World was the greatest place, but everywhere else was just bad as well. He certainly wouldn't be going back to anything wonderful if he were to return to his old life.

There was a sudden knock on the door, and Harry rushed to change out of his pyjamas, and into a t-shirt and trousers. He opened the door, and found that Remus Lupin was standing on the other side.

"I'm sorry, I didn't wake you, did I?" He asked. When Harry shook his head, Lupin continued. "I heard that you left the hospital wing without telling anyone."

"Yes." Harry replied, unsure of why Lupin was even here.

"Why did you want to leave?" Lupin asked.

Harry was silent for a moment, unsure of how to answer the question. He had no obligation to explain anything. "I don't know." He finally answered.

Lupin seemed to be considering how to respond to this. "Does it have anything to do with what you heard when the Dementors were near?" He asked, looking calmly at Harry.

Harry didn't answer. He had no clue how Lupin could have known that that was the reason.

"Harry, I'm just trying to help." Lupin sighed. "_Somebody_ has to."

"I don't want any help!" Harry replied, struggling to stop himself from slamming the door shut. "I just don't want to be here anymore."

"I can understand that." Lupin said. Harry found it very unnerving that he still looked so calm. "It's your life and you have the right to make the choice. I'm just concerned about whether or not you choose the best option."

"Why do you even care?" Harry asked. "I mean, you seem like a nice enough person, but why do you care about what _I_ do? For that matter, why does anybody care about if I'm even here?"

"I'm sorry, Harry, but I don't think that I can explain why you're wanted here. It's Professor Dumbledore's place to tell you that." He apologized. "But I care, because I think that you deserve a good life after everything that you've been through. It's what your parents would have wanted."

"Did... did you know them?" Harry asked, finally meeting Lupin's eyes.

Lupin nodded. "I did, actually. We were at school together. You father, in particular, was one of my closest friends. Both of their lives revolved around you; they would have wanted nothing more than for you to be happy."

Harry looked closely at Lupin. He _did_ seem to genuinely care. "I, um.. Do you want to sit down?" Harry offered, gesturing at the small sofa that was near the window.

"All right." Lupin smiled. He looked very relieved.

They sat down at opposite ends of the sofa. Harry didn't know what to say, but he knew that he wanted to find out more about his parents' lives.

"I... I thought that if I came here, if I was in the world they grew-up in, I'd feel closer to them. But I don't, and now I feel even worse, because " Harry stopped abruptly. He still didn't want to talk about the Dementors.

"I know what you mean." Lupin paused and rubbed his temples, looking very tired. He hesitated slightly before continuing. "After they died, I moved a lot, not staying in one place for too long. But I constantly felt like I needed to be back here, or else I would forget about them. I knew that I didn't want to forget, but it wasn't easy thinking about them..."

Harry nodded. He tried to think of something to say quickly, because Lupin clearly looked uncomfortable continuing. "What were they like?" He asked, voicing the first question that came to mind.

"Wonderful people." Lupin smiled. He looked much younger when he was smiling. "Your mum was one of the kindest people I've ever met, and your father had a great sense of humour. He got into quite a bit of trouble at school, with pranks and such."

Harry smiled. His father sounded like he had been a very fun (though Harry couldn't honestly say that he liked pranks very much at the moment, having run into Peeves only a few hours before.) "I wish I had known them."

"I wish that, as well. But you shouldn't dwell on the past." Lupin replied.

Harry agreed. "I know." He didn't want to think about what could have been, he wanted to think about what would be. The problem was that he didn't know what his future held; he had no clue whether he wanted to stay in the Wizarding World, or leave it behind forever. "Did my parents like being at Hogwarts," Harry felt the need to ask, "and learning magic?"

"Yes, very much." Lupin answered. "Your father had grown-up with a Wizard and Witch for parents, so he had been raised in a magical environment. You mother, on the other hand, obviously wasn't born into a magical family, so it took her a bit of time to understand everything. But, she eventually adjusted, and they both enjoyed being at Hogwarts. It was like a second home."

Harry needed to know more. "Were they good at magic?"

Lupin grinned. "Unbelievably so. They were Head Boy and Girl, and your mum was a prefect as well. They got some of the best marks I've ever seen, and your dad in particular managed some amazing bits of magic for someone that age." Lupin didn't elaborate on what he meant by that, to Harry's disappointment. "They were very happy in the Wizarding World."

Harry listened, somehow feeling closer to his parents than he ever had before.

"I should probably go now. Professor Dumbledore mentioned that he wanted to talk to me about something." Lupin said, getting up.

"Okay." Harry said, and he went to open the door.

Lupin smiled. "Good-bye."

Just as he was about to close the door, Harry said something. "Um... Mr. Lupin?" He had no clue how to address the man.

"You can call me Remus."

"Ah, okay." Harry replied. "Um, thanks for... telling me about my parents and everything."

"Anytime." Lupin said kindly.

Harry finally closed the door, and went back to the sofa. He looked out the window, at the grounds that were now visible. His parents has spent part of their lives in this school, learning magic and having fun. They had grown-up in this castle. When they had left, they got married, had Harry and took care of him with the hopes that he'd eventually live in the world they had loved so much.

Somehow Harry knew that he would never again want to leave.

* * *

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